"G'' am I only on day 7???

G:

     Gratitude:  "To express it is gracious and honorable.  To enact it is generous and nobel, but to live with gratitude ever in our hearts is to touch Heaven."  President Monson

     Generous:    Be generous with your time, money, and talents in bringing to pass all that is righteous.

     Gospel:  Be grateful for it.  Live it.  Share it.  (Okay, so I skipped out on Sunday School and Relief Society.  Do as I say not as I do!)

     Gifts:  These will be the grandchildren you bless us with!

     Grandchildren:  I don't know about yours, but mine are perfect!

My F words

F:

     Family:  The basic unit of society.  They come in assorted shapes, sizes, colors, etc.  They can be forever.

     Friends:  They too come in assorted shapes, sizes, and colors.  Your best friend should always be your spouse!

     Favorites:  God doesn't have them.  Neither should we.

     Favoured:  If you want to be 'highly favoured' of the Lord keep His commandments.   To be highly favoured does not mean favorite, rather it means to claim the blessings that come from being obedient.

     Forgivness:  If you want to receive it you must give it.

     Faith:  Takes work.  Fear takes none.  Cannot co-exist with fear so always choose faith!  It will bring peace in troubled, difficult times and in not so troubled and difficult times.

     Father:  What you will become when you bless me with grand babies!

'E'asy does it

E:

     Energy:  Decreases in the evenings for mom and dad, increases for children.

     Excuses:  Make none!  Just get it done!

     Education:  Pursue it. Never stop learning.

     Experiences:  The good;  give thanks.  The bad; learn, grow, and  give thanks.  The ugly; repent, forgive whatever it takes to get beyond them.

     Evaluations:  They are all a matter of opinion, isn't that right sis?!

     Equal:  1 + 1 = partnership in marriage.    

     Exceptional:  Your offspring, my grandchildren!

"D" Day

D:
     Debt:  Incur it sparingly. Pay it off.
     Decisions, Decisions, Decisions:  Pray concerning the important ones.  Coin toss for the unimportant.
     Dates:  Continue to  have them.  With your spouse and children.

     Dreams:  Do come true if you make them  happen!

     Differences:  Accept them.  It will make your life and theirs easier.

     Devil:  No, he did NOT make you do it.  Your choice, be accountable!

     Devote:  Your time, talents, and income to building up your family and the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints.

     Dividends:  Grandchildren, the pay off for having children.

     Daddy:  A name my grandchildren will call you!

    

Day 3 "C" Claudia give her children counsel

C:

     Choices:  Have consequences.  Always.  They not only affect the person making the choice, but family members, friends, co-workers, you get my jest.  Choose wisely, but when you don't learn from it.

     Cheerfulness:  Choose  it!

     Counsel:  Learn it, study it, choose to obey it when given by the Prophet and Apostles.

     Compassion:   Work to acquire it, feel it, and render it.  

     Chastity:     A law from God.  Choose it, live it, honor it physically and mentally.

     Children:  My best investments.  Teach them, train them, protect them, provide for them, love them, nurture them,  HAVE them.  We love grandbabies!

     Claudia:  Your mother.  The woman who gave birth to the four of you.  The woman who used a wooden spoon not only on cake mixes, but on bottoms (okay, I have never professed to be a perfect parent!)  The woman who loves you all to the moon and back a zillion times. 

The Birds and The B's

B...

   Believe:  In the divine destiny you and others possess.

   Become:  A better you.

   Blessings:  They come in all shapes and sizes.  They come continuously and constantly.

   Build:  Be a builder. Build up.  Build up the good in others.

   Broke:  What you will be once you are married and raising a family!

   Babies:  Grandpas and Grandmas LOVE them.

The Facts of Life From A to Z

In 26 days my youngest son will become a married man.  I will not be losing a son.  I will, once again for the fourth and final time, be inheriting a most wonderful in law.  I have decided it is time for Phillip to get 'the talk.'  Yup, the facts of life talk.  And since I never gave this talk to the others when they married I decided to kill 4 birds with one stone.  Yes, Matthew, Jonathan, Alizabeth and Phillip ready or not here it comes.  The facts of life from A to Z!  One letter a day.

A....

     Accountability:  Accept it!  Own it!  Acknowledge it!

     Attitude:  "Life is 10 % what happens to you and 90 % how you deal with it."

     Adversity:  Be grateful for it. Embrace it. It provides an opportunity for growth.

     Anger:  A deadly toxin for the body and soul.  Resolve it quickly.

     Angels:  What grandpas and grandmas are blessed with for not killing their teen age children!

Proud to be a Conservative Democrat in a total Republican State

I read this letter to the editor in the Tribune and loved it.  Such truth and wisdom.  I agree 100%.

"Polls show that the majority of Utahns are willing to pay higher taxes to support better education, yet the Utah Legislature, controlled by the Republican Party, has for two decades consistently voted to reduce funding for K-12. Vicki Rasely asks, “Who keeps voting for these people?” (“Funding dearth,” Forum, July 7) Who indeed? That is the elephant in the schoolroom.

That elephant is Mormon voters. Over the past 30 years, Mormon culture seems to have changed such that it has become socially unacceptable to vote for a Democrat, no matter how conservative. This has guaranteed Republicans’ re-election, regardless of how they vote. Against voters’ wishes, they have consistently voted to defund education, and voters have repeatedly re-elected them anyway.

Education in Utah can improve only if Mormon parents and grandparents work up the gumption to vote for conservative Democrats who support better education funding. Democrats know that their re-election depends on voting according to their constituents’ wishes, something that has not troubled Republicans for many years now.

Next year Utah voters will have another opportunity to change things. Will you vote for better education, or will you once again vote to continue defunding it?"

Brooke Jennings

'Toadally Awesome'

WANTED

Front profile of Mr. Beans.

 Side profile.

 This is a $40.00 Toad home I purchased for Mr. Beans.

 This is Mr. Beans just waiting for me to leave so he can return to his lower income housing!!!

Come back Mr. Beans, I am missing you!

Gus and Isaac

 

 See Gus.

See Isaac.

See Gus see Isaac.

 See Isaac tweak Gus' nose.

 See Isaac tweak Gus' nose again.

See Gus run.

Run Gus.

Run!

Tell me....how is it possible that someone so cute can:

     1.  Pick all my tomatoes?  Green no less.

     2.  Dump cereal all over my dining room?

     3.  Water log my plants?

     4.  Water my outside basement stairs?

     5.  Dig in my flower bed?

     6.  Pull Gus by the tail?

Here is  how his little mind saw it all.

     1.  Helping grandma garden.

     2.  Helping grandma vacuum.

     3.  Helping water grandmas flower pots.

     4.  Washing dirty steps.

     5.  Weeding grandma's flower bed.

     6.  Dust mopping grandma's wood floor.

"When we're helping we're happy and we sing as we go.  For we like to help grandma cause we all love her so."

Thanks Zekey for all your help this past week!  Grandma loves you and your cute little face!

Five Little Speckled Frogs....

Poly wog world was somewhat successful.   I thought  having a pet toad hopping around in my house would be quite fun.  Just did not know how to potty train them so we turned quite a few of these adorable little creatures loose in the garden and hoped the best.  The rest went back to their original pond.  I grew tired of green smelly water on my patio!  Also, did you know monster size tadpoles are cannibalistic!  That was a gross sight and that was when I decided the project had fulfilled the purpose of its creation!

Out of the mouth of babes...

Babe #1:  Age 7
The Primary Chorister informed the children that she loved summer.  This was followed by the question:  "Why do you think I love summer?"  One little girl raised her hand.  Her answer:  "Because your kids are home and you get to spend time with them."  Wasn't quite the answer she was looking for.  She stuttered, she stammered and one look on her face told you that she was ready for school to start!  All the adults got quite the chuckle out of that.  The correct answer...she loves flowers!  Flowers are, after all, lower maintenance.

Babe #2: Age 6
During singing time in Primary this same chorister would have a child come up, read a scripture, and then the children would guess what primary song went with the scripture and then sing that song.  Easy task for the older primary, more difficult for the younger ones.  The key word in one of the scriptures read was 'stream'.  She was obviously  referring to the song: "Give Said the Little Stream".  Hands went up in all directions and the consenus was:  "Row, Row, Row Your Boat".  No, that song is  not in the Primary Songbook, but I think we should have sung it anyway.  I bet they all knew it!

Gotta love working in Primary.  I bet they did not have near as much fun in the adult classes.  Though I did hear a funny one around the dinner table. 

Babe #3:  Age 25
In Sunday School class they had many visitors so everyone was invited to tell who they were.  The teacher began by saying he was so and so and Bishop Campbell had been his Bishop.  The next two young ladies introduced themselves followed by the comment:  "We are Bishop Campbells daughters."  That got it going.  From then on out it would be a comment such as:  "I am so and so and I don't even know Bishop Campbell."  "I am  Bishop Campbell (yes, he was in the room) ."  When it was Phil's turn to introduce himself he said:  "I am Phil Bassett and I am pretty sure Bishop Campbell is grateful he was not my Bishop!"  This was followed by fits of laughter!  Gotta love small towns where everyone knows everyone and everyones historic past!  By the way...Phil is a real babe!  Just ask Kristina!  Or should I say Phil is marrying a real babe!!